'Mother of all data breaches' reported in latest large-scale hack

FOX 2 (WJBK) - It's a shocking number - 26  billion account records were stolen in what's being called the 'mother of all data breaches.'

The leak includes popular sites like Dropbox,  Linkedin, Telegram, and Twitter. It was detailed in a report from Cybernews.com and is unsettling for anyone who ever goes online. 

"It’s horrible. It’s really horrible," said Professor Huirong Fu, of Oakland University.

Fu is a founding director of OU's Center for Cybersecurity.  She says this is difficult for consumers who sometimes have no choice but to register their information with companies they want to do business with.

This includes taking birthdays, addresses, and sometimes even Social Security numbers, putting many people between a rock and a hard place.

"We have no choice, if they don’t want to provide this information, they can not use their platform," she said. "This is horrible."

Cybernews.com calls it the "Mother of all Breaches" – 12 terabytes of information. Some companies you’ve likely used,

So can you do anything?

The Federal Trade Commission has some general tips: Secure your devices by keeping security software, internet browser, and operating systems up to date. protect your accounts — particularly those with personal information, like your bank, email, and social media accounts.

Strong passwords and multi-factor authentication can really help. Also be very circumspect when giving out any personal information to any organization even if you trust them, because the possibility of a hack is always a real threat.

For more on the data breach click here.